The Royal wedding helped send the country's retail sales figures soar last month as Britons stocked up on prosecco and food to join in the celebrations.

The sunny weather also played a part in the rise, which saw sales increase by 3.9 per cent compared to the year before, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said.

Supermarkets - Boom - Sales - Royal - Fans

Supermarkets said they saw a boom in sales as royal fans stocked up on fizz and party food to enjoy as they watched Prince Harry and Meghan exchange their vows.

But May's booming sales were preceded by several months of sluggish growth hovering at around one or 1.5 per cent from January until the end of April.

ONS - 'Feedback - Retailers - Period - Weather

ONS said: 'Feedback from retailers suggested that a sustained period of good weather and Royal wedding celebrations encouraged spending in food and household goods stores in May.

'The quantity bought saw a sharp increase to year-on-year growth in May at 3.9% when compared with April at 1.4 per cent - possibly due to a combination of warm weather and slow year-on-year growth in May 2017 at 0.8 per cent.'

Figures - Sheer - Scale - Trend - Shoppers

The figures also lay bare the sheer scale of the trend which has seen shoppers shun the high street and flock online.

The number of overall online sales has soared - accounting for 16.2 per cent of all sales, according to the ONS figures.